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Kingdom of La Plata
The Kingdom of La Plata (German: Königreich La Plata; Spanish: Reino de La Plata; Commonly La Plata) is a sovereign state encompassing the Patagonia region of South America. La Plata borders Bolivia, Peru, and Brazil to the north, the Southern Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Southern Pacific Ocean to the west, and the Southern Ocean to the South. The country is a unitary sovereign state with 41 provinces, 13 metropolitan cities, and 4 territories. The capital is located in the metropolitan city of Guten Luft, which houses the nation's unicameral parliament and the monarchy. The nation is the eighth largest in the world by land area, and the largest German speaking country by land area. La Plata is a member of the the United Nations. A recognized regional power and great power, La Plata's economy is Latin America's largest, with a "Very High" ranking on the Human Development Index. The nation has the second largest population in Latin America, the eleventh largest worldwide, at 125,830,271 as of 2013. La Plata is the only nation in the world with a Gini coefficient ranking of "very low." Etymology "La Plata" is a Spanish noun phrase meaning "the silver." The Estuario de Rio de la Plata was the primary source of European immigration into the Patagonia region, and as a result the Spanish government named the area extending to the Pacific Ocean the "Viceroyality of La Plata." When the Viceroyality was gifted to the Holy Roman Emperor Matthias in 1601, a Hapsburg to Hapsburg transaction, Matthias allowed for the name of the region to stay with the population, even though the colony was made up largely of German speaking Austrians. When the colony gained independence from the foreign rule of the Hapsburgs, some suggestions were made to change the name of the new nation to something resembled upon by the ideals of the settlers. However King Franz I did not allow for the nation to change its name, and the Kingdom of La Plata became the official name of the nation. History Spanish era Europeans arrived in the region for the first time in 1502 with the voyage of Amerigo Vespucci. The Spanish navigator Juan Díaz de Solís visited the territory in 1516. In 1520, while attempting to circumnavigate the earth, Ferdinand Magellan discovered the southern passage now named after him, the Strait of Magellan, being the first European to set foot on today's La Plata. The next Europeans to reach the region were Diego de Almagro and his band of Spanish conquistadors, who came from Peru in 1535 seeking gold. The Spanish encountered various cultures that supported themselves principally through slash-and-burn agriculture and hunting. Unlike the other regions of South America, the colonization of the Río de la Plata estuary was not influenced by any gold rush, since it lacked any precious metals to mine. The first European explorer, Juan Díaz de Solís, arrived to the Río de la Plata in 1516. Spain established the Viceroyalty of Peru, encompassing all its holdings in South America. In 1536 Pedro de Mendoza established a small settlement at the modern location of Guten Luft (then Beunos Aires), which was abandoned in 1541. A second one was established 1580 by Juan de Garay, and Córdoba in 1573 by Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera. Those regions were part of the Viceroyalty of Peru, whose capital was Lima, and settlers arrived from that city. The colonization of modern La Plata came from 3 different directions: from Paraguay, establishing the Governorate of the Río de la Plata, from Peru and from Chile. The natural ports on the Río de la Plata estuary could not be used because all ships were meant to be made through the port of Callao near Lima, a condition that led to contraband becoming the normal means of commerce in cities such as Asunción, Buenos Aires, and Santiago. Austrian takeover The condensation of Spanish governance at the city of Lima left the majority of land in Patagonia lawless, which provided an opportunity for the Austrian Hapsburg's to establish a colony with the allowance of their ruling Spanish relatives. The Austrian colony of Waldansicht on the northern part of the Río de la Plata estuary on August 8th, 1563. The freedom of the colony attracted many Austrians, and the land's spaciousness provided for the booming growth of the Austrian population. By 1600, it was estimated that the population of Waldansicht and the surrounding area was higher than that of Austria and the Viceroyalty of Peru itself, at 4.8 million. With the bustling population of Waldansicht and the colony of Gemaltvögel, the Spanish became alerted they might lose influence over the entire region. On the 44th birthday of Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor, in 1601, the Spanish crown gifted the area of what is modern La Plata to the Austrian monarch to insure that the booming Austrian colony would spread in a controlled area rather than across the Americas. With the entirety of the Patagonia under Austrian rule, the Spanish living in the area became disgruntled that they lived under an alien crown. This sparked tensions when Austrians from Waldansicht began to spread into Beunos Aires and began out-populating the Spanish living in the city. Tensions reached their highest on March 5th, 1603, when the cousin of Matthias, Ludolf I, was crowned the first Duke of La Plata. Ludolf changed city names into their German forms and made it mandatory that citizens learn Austrian German as their spoken language. Under the rule of Ludolf, the Spanish population became very discriminated upon unless they learned German. By August of the same year, the Spanish were rioting in the city of Guten Luft. Ludolf enacted martial law over the Spanish, but Austrians were allowed the normal rights of living without martial law. The enactment of martial law throughout the Duchy sparked the First Platisches Civil War with the October 17th Massacre. First Civil War and the Independence doctrine The First Civil War lasted for twenty years from 1603 to 1626, in which the growth of the nation as a whole was severely stunted. The primarily Spanish west became a massive source of support for the Spanish in the Austrian dominated east. The result of this was the creation of the three fronts of the Civil War; the Urban front, the Eastern front, and the Western front. The Urban front had the largest amount of fighting, taking place primarily in the cities of Guten Luft, Toleranz, Waldansicht, and Rosafluß. After six years of conflict, both Spanish and Austrian forces received external support from their respective mother nations. While the two Empires did give some support to their sides, it was extremely limited seeing as the Thirty Years War had made them allies and they could not spare to many resources to the colony. The Spanish motive was to reclaim the land as sovereign Spanish lands, while the Austrians believed the land rightfully was granted to them. After fighting for twenty three years, a huge portion of the Spanish population had evacuated into neighboring territories. With the Austrians having the population advantage, the Spanish remaining in the country began negotiations with the Austrian government in Guten Luft. The Silber Schloß Declaration was agreed upon by delegates of the Spanish and Austrians in the country, the signing moderated by Austrian Diplomats and Soldiers from the Hapsburg Monarchy. The Declaration recognized that the country was officially free of Spanish colonial rule, and that the Austrian Empire had rightful ownership of the lands. The signing of the Declaration caused many more Spanish to leave La Plata, though some remained. After the Civil War was ended, the country was left in massive destruction. Many cities were without a formal government, and some areas were even lawless. The expenses of reinforcing and reconstruction were of a great cost to the Hapsburg Monarchy, and so to avoid having to pay for the colonial repairs during its own conflict with Protestant countries in Europe, the Monarchy granted La Plata independence as a Kingdom under the House of Hapsburg. The Doctrine of Platisches Independence was approved on September 17th, 1626, and La Plata gained international recognition from the Austrian Archduchy, the Holy Roman Empire, the Spanish Empire, and the Portuguese Empire. The national government, which was an absolute monarchy under King Franz I, began reconstruction using donations from the Spanish Hapsburgs, who saw it as reparation for the destruction caused by Spaniard dissidents. Reconstruction was ended twelve years later in 1638 with the completion of the Toll Westlich Straße. Golden age From 1638 to 1782 the Platiches Golden Age was a period of economic, cultural, and population growth. With the end of the Thirty Years' War in Europe in 1648, the power of the foreign Hapsburg's over the local ruling family was greatly declined due to political turmoil in Europe. As La Plata had to reconstruct itself without foreign industry, the economy had undergone great self sufficiency and rebirth. By 1650, La Plata had risen to become a regional power in Latin America, though it greatly refrained from international politics. This period of isolation and growth in the nation was coined to be the Golden Age by ruling King Franz I, who had closed trade with European nations that abused La Plata's resources. Because of his nationalist attitude, Franz I gained the nickname "Der Guten König" (The Good King) in La Plata. Along with great economic growth, the country also experienced large scale cultural and social growth. Cuisine, art, literature, and other forms of culture had grown into independent forms with some foreign influences. Beef had become a staple commodity in recipes during reconstruction, and Platiches cuisine became highly dependent on the nation's vasts amount of beef. Similar occurrences appeared in visual arts, music, literature, dress, and many other forms of cultural transgressions. These divisions from foreign influences continued growing until King Ferdinand I declared that the residents of La Plata were no longer Austrian, but Platiches, in 1689. This, along with increased isolationist practices but into place by the King, further severed bonds with Austrian rulers in Europe. By 1712, La Plata had become entirely self sufficient from European trade with the Doctrine of Platiches Self Reliance. The Golden Age ended in 1782, when La Plata was invaded by the United Kingdom and Austria in the Austro-British Invasion of La Plata. Austro-British invasions Increasing isolationism from La Plata prompted Austria to try and increase influence over the former colony. However, La Plata's ruling monarchy had become staunchly opposed to European rule ever since the Austrian Hapsburg's "abandoned" the colony during the Thirty Years' War. Seeing as diplomatic reunification was impossible, Austria struck a deal with the United Kingdom that half of profits from La Plata would be given to the British crown if they assisted Austria with the recapture of the nation. Britain, having lost its major New World colonies in the American Revolutionary War, agreed to the deal. The Austro-British invasion began in 1782 with the Blockade of the Rio de la Plata estuary and subsequent Battle of Waldansicht. The surprise of the attack caused a decisive victory for Austro-British forces, but the city was immediately put under heavy siege by Platisches forces following the assault. The siege lasted for seven months before Austo-British forces surrendered and left Waldansicht in an extremely volatile state. The short war of eight months time had left only damages to a single city, but the political repercussions of the short-lived invasion were extraordinary. Along with a hefty fee to repair to city, Platiches citizens moved all support to isolation from British and Austrian powers, and political ties between La Plata and Austria were completely severed. Relations with the United Kingdom were also severely damaged, and King Franz III stated that the actions of the British monarchy were "revolting." With strong anti-British sentiment throughout the nation, La Plata began solidifying relations with France in an attempt to secure its position in the political spectrum. La Plata held strong support for the French throughout the later end of the 18th century, supporting both the Revolutionaries and the Monarchy at different points in time. With the emergence of the French Empire in 1802, La Plata aligned itself with the government of Napoleon I. As the Platiches government became inclined to support the Napoleonic Empire, Spain became alarmed that La Plata could pose as a staging ground for a French invasion of Latin America. Britain, Austria, and Spain staged the Coalition Invasion of La Plata in the manner of a preemptive strike in 1805. The Blockade of the Rio de la Plata estuary was a first strike at trade between France and La Plata. Multiple campaigns were launched at the nation instead of one; the Abartfluß campaign, the Playazuhause campaign, and the Gemaltvögel campaign. The invasion lasted for seven years until 1812, when Platiches forces successfully defeated the Coalition at the Second Battle of Salz. The invasion further told the population that the British and Austrians were no longer worthy of Platiches support, and relations with the Spanish were also heavily damaged. With the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, La Plata insured its ability of full self sufficiency from European powers before setting itself into a deep isolation for a second time. Industrial Revolution and political realignment Four years after the fall of the Napoleonic Empire in 1815, La Plata began undergoing vast industrialization in cities along the Toll Westlich Straße and surrounding cities; primarily in Guten Luft, Rosafluß, Toleranz, Waldansicht, and Heilige Glaube. These cities became known as the Silbergürtel, because they became the main areas of commerce and industry in the nation. These cities underwent massive urbanization as citizens moved in from farther out rural areas. The vast amount of natural resources that La Plata had already tapped into were seemingly "endless" in that they extended into large amounts capable of supporting industry along the Silbergürtel. As industry in the country grew, the European imperialist powers became very interested in Platiches trade. La Plata refused to trade with the United Kingdom, Austria, and Spain; giving Prussia, Sweden, the Netherlands, and France economic edge against those nations. Infuriated that the former colony was not trading with its mother nation, Austria began to seek diplomatic solutions with La Plata rather than a military invasion. The Rosafluß Conference was held between La Plata, Austria, and Prussia to fuel Germanic interest with each other. The Conference, which last from the March of 1834 to the same year's May resulted in the realignment of La Plata's general political orientation to that of support for other Germanic nations. While the general population's political change lasted from 1834 to 1849, the end result was the majority of people supporting Austria and Prussia rather than France. France detested this, but only saw a small decline in trading with La Plata and no other effects were put on the nation. World Wars and Second Civil War On June 2nd, 1914, the Platiches monarch held a conference with Austro-Hungarian and German representatives that told the nation to mobilize and send forces to Europe to assist in the War. While the monarch, King Maximilian, supported the entrance into World War I, the public did not want an increase in already-high taxes due to a war. Maximilian held a referendum with the public, the first of any King to do so, and the public voted by a slim majority to remain neutral. Outraged, the Austo-Hungarian and German representatives threatened to cut-off trade with La Plata if they did not join the war. The cut-off of trade would result in the financial turmoil of La Plata, as tax money was used in a balanced budget for government matters. With the extra flow of trade surplus, some government welfare programs would have to be ended, which the population had become almost dependent on. The King decided to stick with the referendum's decision, and trade between La Plata and other Germanic nations was ended. Taxes were raised in an attempt to cover the cost of welfare, but the end result was an extremely unhappy population. Soon people of lower class origin began rallying against the wealthy aristocracy that controlled the nation. The King was afraid of being deposed, but he was also too soft-hearted to call in the military to end the protests. Maximilian resigned as King, again the first monarch to do so, and the crown was passed on to his brother Fredrick II. Frederick was much stricter than his brother, and his actions against the protesters gained him the name "König eines Stahlthron". The conflicts between the military and the protesters sparked massive conflicts across the nation between supporters of the monarchy and supporters of democracy, resulting in the Second Platiches Civil War to begin in the October of 1914. The Platiches monarchy gained the support of Austria-Hungary and Germany, while the democratic rebels gained the support of the United States, France, and the United Kingdom. The League of Platiches Rebellions (Liga von Platiches Rebellionen, LPR) was formed between the anarchists, communists, socialists, and democrats who wanted the overthrow of the Platiches throne. The Crown Civil Enforcement (Krone Zivilrechtliche Durchsetzung, KZD) was formed from the supporters of the Platiches monarchy and opponents of the rebel groups. Clashes between the LPR and the KZD lasted for nearly thirty years, until 1948. The war could have ended in 1938, but the outbreak of World War II further prompted the KZD to continue cracking down with the support of the Axis Powers. The Brennenburg Peace Resolutions were signed between the supporters of the monarchy and the rebels. The resolutions agreed to create a parliament elected by the people of the provinces, and that the parliament would have to approve the enactments and laws of the monarchy before they could take effect. The Resolutions also agreed that political parties would be banned from the nation, to insure that La Plata could not politically divide itself again. Cold War and White Movement With the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, the new Platiches government began to fear that a similar occurrence would take place in its northern neighbors. La Plata's government remained highly autocratic even with the establishment of the new parliament, as members of the aristocracy were typically only the people elected into the parliament. The Platiches government built a large border fence across its only land border, and heavily stockpiled armed forces into zones across the new border. With the only autocratic government in the world, La Plata began to feel isolated from both the Westerners and the Soviets in the Cold War. The result was the formation of the Weiße Bewegung (White Movement) which urged isolation and self development similar to that of First Golden Age La Plata. The White Movement kept growth inside the nation, and relations between European nations were ended. La Plata entered total isolation beginning in 1953, following the division of Korea. The White Movement was ended in 1991, after nearly 38 years of isolation. Contemporary era When the White Movement ended with the coronation of Queen Katarina, the government set itself to establish well relations with all nations of the world. Because La Plata had remained isolated from the world, the nation was entirely self sufficient. The country's modernization was declared by Queen Katarina, but she refrained from putting La Plata into the global market just yet. The government still controlled assets across the nation indirectly through the aristocracy, and privatization would surely interfere with the delicate balance of communism and capitalism in the nation. The Queen created the Guild Act of 1993, which was passed by the Parliament in the same year. The Guild Act would reform the aristocracy into corporation-like structures called Guilds, which would control the nation's economy by sector. The members of the aristocracy would be reformed into Estates, separate families that could own the Guilds and be elected into the Parliament. With the distribution of wealth between the aristocracy and the Commoners being highly communist, the Queen established that a family of Commoners could establish an Estate if they owned property, were at least composed of eight family members, and were sworn by the Crown as citizens. If an Estate wished to do business, then they would become a member of the Guild doing the business they wanted to work in. The Guild Act also protected small businesses on a provincial level, stating that Guilds could not interfere in local economies that did business outside of a major city. To help define major cities, Queen Katarina created the Metropolitan City Act of 1993, which turned the 13 largest cities into their own regional areas. The newly reformed economy was efficient and modern, while also keeping the traditional values of the monarchy that the people and government supported. With the new Guild system, La Plata could do business with other nations without fear of international takeover. La Plata was officially declared a developed nation by the United Nations in 1996, only three years after the modernization began. Politics The Kingdom of La Plata is a unicameral parliamentary monarchy with a Monarch as the head of state and government. The Monarch rules under the divine right of kings, creates laws and enactments for the nation, and leads the military in times of war. All actions of the monarch must be approved by the Parliament. The Parliament is unicameral and non-partisan, and Members of Parliament are elected from Estates regionally in provinces. La Plata has no constitution, and the rights and legal procedures of the nation are created by the monarch upon coronation. All power in the nation is vested in the Monarch, and the Parliament acts as a regulator to benefit and protect the people of the nation. Government Each new monarch of La Plata introduces their government system when their coronation occurs. The government set up by the monarch is approved by the Parliament, and monarchs are allowed to change the government entirely, keep the same as the preceding monarch, or make some changes to the previous government. The Brennenburg Peace Resolutions of 1948 state that the Parliament is a body existing "as long as the Crown rules" to "protect the interests of the people towards the rule of the Crown" and that it must "approve each legal action taken by the Crown." Therefore, the Parliament must approve the new government of the Monarch, and the Monarch must allow the Parliament to continue existing when they take power. Her Holy Majesty's Government of Katarina Regina (Ihrer Heiligen Majestät Regierung Katarina Regina) is the official term for the government of Katarina, the current monarch of La Plata. Katarina's government is an altered form of the Ludwigisches government, allowing more power in the nation's economics to her Guilds created in 1993. Otherwise, Katarina retains the full powers of the Monarch while being subjected to the approval of the Parliament. The Monarch has the ability to create laws and enactments, command the military in times of war, and create policies for the socioeconomic structure of the nation. The Parliament exists to protect the best interest of the people in relation to the rule of the Monarch, meaning that the Parliament must approve all new policies, laws, and enactments created by the Monarch. The Parliament is unicameral and non-partisan with no head or speaker, only a body in which votes to either approve or disapprove the legal proceedings of the Monarch. The Parliament is elected by province based on population, for every 1,000,000 citizens there is one Member of the Parliament. Provinces with less than 1,000,000 people are insured one Member of the Parliament to represent them. There are currently 126 Members of the Parliament. Citizens vote for an Estate which share similar views as them, and the winning Estate selects a member to become a Member of the Parliament. Law and justice The Monarch of the nation creates the law upon their coronation, or they can keep or edit the policies of a preceding Monarch. The legal system in La Plata concerns the rights of the citizens, the enforcement and keeping of order, and the administration of justice. Her Holy Majesty's Law of Katarina Regina is the current legal system of the nation, and the laws are the product of Katarina herself and have been termed Katarinisches law. Policing is managed on a national level, with four law enforcement agencies existing under a unified branch on the military. The Platiches Metropolitan Police Force (Platiches Polizei Metropolit, PPM) is the unified police forces for all metropolitan cities in the country. The PPM is the most extensive and largest of the four polices. The organization has the responsibility of administering the enforcement of law, the keeping of the peace and order, and the safety of the regions within the boundaries of all metropolitan cities. The Platiches Rural Police Force (Platiches Ländlichpolizei, PLP) is the police force that manages law enforcement throughout smaller non-urban towns and other rural areas. They are the most widespread of the four polices, but they are only the second largest in numbers. The Platiches Military Police (Platiches Militärpolizei, PMP) manage the enforcement of law among the military. The Military Police operate around the country at all military bases, and military and civilian-military incidents are investigated by the Military Police rather than local police. The Platiches Governmental Police Force (Platiches Staatlichepolizei, PSP) are the smallest of the police forces, and manage constitutional law enforcement, incarceration, and investigations into the government. Justice in La Plata is seen as Draconian by other Western countries; the most common form of punishment for a crime is death. Incarceration centres are highly regulated by the government to insure that prisoners are not treated comfortably, and most function similar to work camps. Known as Arbeitsamt, these work camps have a variety of duties which can be performed based on the handicap of the prisoner and the extremity of the crime. Crimes which are seen as "Insults to Humanity" are punished with death; the most common execution method being put to extremely hard labour to the point of death. Crimes on a moderate level that are seen as "Insults to Order" are punished with labour for a time equivalent to the extremity of the crime. Petty crimes seen as "Infringements to Order" are punished with a small time of hard labour that is not life threatening. The Arbeitsamt produce goods for guilds such as Steel, Automobiles, and Textiles. Foreign relations La Plata is viewed as a "wayward nation" that is not aligned to any existing political order system. Instead, Katarina has stated that La Plata is a "nation who's allegiance is to that of its people and no other's." La Plata thus enjoys warm relations with most countries, such as China, the United States, and Saudi Arabia. La Plata is not outright a diplomatic country, and only holds membership in the United Nations. Even then, La Plata is not a major member of the United Natins despite its size. The country only has diplomatic missions in selected countries, those being Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Sweden, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela, Cuba, Brazil, Bolivia, Japan, China, Russia, North Korea, South Korea, India, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan, Egypt, and South Africa. Most other countries recognize La Plata as a nation, but do not hold formal diplomatic relations. Military The Katarinisches Armed Forces (Katarinischesmilitär) are the nation's armed forces, the world's sixth largest, after the Russian Federation with a total of 975,430 active members and 1,245,055 reserve personnel. The Armed Forces are directly controlled by the reigning monarch of the kingdom, who has control over the five service branches; the Katarinisches Rifles (Katarinischesgewehre), the Katarinisches Cavalry (Katarinischeskavallerie), the Katarinisches Guard (Katarinichesgarde), the Katarinisches Navy (Katarinischesmarine), and the Katarinisches Air Force (Katarinischesluftwaffe). The Monarch has the power to make declarations of war, peace, and cease fire, all with the consent of the Parliament. Generals are placed at the top of each branch, and they generally have control over their respective branch with the consent of the Monarch. Economy The Kingdom of La Plata operates a developed economy that meets modern standards worldwide. However, the nation's economy s highly protectionist and unopened to foreign trade. A large amount of its industry is maintained for domestic use, with only a small fraction of all produced being exported. The economy is considered to be a mix of feudalism, socialism, and capitalism, with industrial and agricultural production stressed the most. The economy as a whole is divided into three main segments, which in turn can be considered three entirely separate but united economies; the composite local segment, which is composed of the local economies of all localities, the composite national segment, which is composed of the Guilds and their productions, and the international segment, which is made up of international trade. The composite local segment of the economy consists of the economies of every locality within the nation that operates with some form of capitalism. These economies are made up of privately owned small businesses and the production for and from those businesses. This form of economics is prevalent in rural areas, but it is found in some urban communities. It is essentially the culmination of cottage industry on a modern, localized area. It operates almost entirely differently from the Guild system, and it is not managed by the Guilds in any way. Under Katarinisches law, all peoples within the nation are entitled to the right to participate freely within a local private economy. However, by law it is illegal to form corporations other than Estates that can control more than two businesses without personal ties to each new segment of the business. The composite national segment of the economy is composed of the Guilds, which control the production and use of industries on a national level. Guilds are corporation-like structures which allow for the vast incorporation of hundreds, more or less, of businesses into a single entity in a mixed government and privately controlled structure. Based off the three systems of socialism, capitalism, and feudalism, Guilds exist in all forms of economic sectors, and Guilds serve each sector through the use of combined industry controlled by a composite corporate system which is influenced highly by a system of feudalism. For example, A member of an Estate, or the Estate as a whole, can establish a stationary store in a neighborhood of a metropolitan city. The store is then registered as apart of the Guild, and 25% of the profits from the store are sent to the Guild while 75% goes to the Estate in control of the store. The Guild, in turn, then promotes then uses 60% of those profits to support struggling businesses and 40% to pay members of the Guild's corporate system. Guilds are only permitted to own businesses in urban areas, and for a business to exist within an urban area it does not have to become apart of a Guild, though it must then pertain to the law of local businesses. The international segment of the economy is composed of the very small amount of trade done between Guilds and foreign countries. To trade with a foreign company, business is conducted between the Guild of International Consumption and any Guild that wishes to export or import their goods. All business conducted must be approved by the government, though most of the times the trade is approved. The majority of exports are raw materials, while the majority of imports are resources not immediately available within La Plata. Industries The two domestic economies have characteristics that are commonly found throughout example across the country. The composite local segment of the economy, also called the rural economy, is made up of 67% primary industries, 24% secondary industries, and 9% tertiary industries. In this economy, primary industries include agriculture, mining, fishing, and logging. Oil drilling has historically existed, but the practice was banned after international companies attempted and proceeded to find a way into the country to begin their own operations in isolation. Secondary industries are mainly craft and artisan ones found in small settlements throughout the nation; tailoring, smithing, smelting, processing, and goods transportation are some of the most common forms of the secondary sector. The tertiary sector in a rural setting is very small for the country being a first world nation, and the primary basis for these industries are in rural settlements. The most common tertiary industries in the local economies are lodging, food and drink, and banking. The composite national segment, also called the urban economy, is located throughout urban areas within the country, and shares a common characteristic throughout most areas based on the rate of industrial sectors within the economy. The urban economy is composed of 7% primary activities, 42% secondary activities, and 51% tertiary activities. Quaternary activities are also present in the urban economy, though composite a very small portion of the economy as a whole. The most common primary activities in this economy are fishing and agriculture, as most other industries are exclusive to rural areas. Secondary industries are based on modern industrialized standards rather than craft industries, meaning it is composed of manufacturing and other heavy industries. Tertiary activities are the most common form of urban economic activity, and include services such as hospitality, finance, and guild corporate structures. Quaternary activities, also known as information activities, include journalists, professors, and other educators located throughout urban areas. Transportation Historically, La Plata's transportation system has relied heavily on water passages to reach both the interiors and the coastal areas of the country. The Großes Flußmacht (Great River Work) is a collection of nearly 1200 kilometers worth of canals that spans the northern and central parts of the country, a system that was created by various projects beginning during the reign of Franz II based upon the Chinese Grand Canal. Since the development of railroads, however, travel by rail has greatly overtook that of both road and canal. Air travel, when it was commercialized, never became popular in La Plata despite the size of the country, but the industry became and remains important for connections with foreign nations. With the continued modernization of the country throughout the 1990s, rail and air transportation methods saw massive rise in reliability and necessity within the country. As of 2012, rail based transportation remains the most used method of domestic connections, while air and sea travel remain important primarily for international connections. Road, canal, and domestic air transportation exist within the country as well developed methods of travel, but are not as popular among the populace as rail transportation. International travel is largely limited within the country, and methods of entering the country by land are largely nonexistent because of the historical political instability of La Plata's neighbours. Sea and air transportation hold nearly 80% of all international entrance pathways into the country, with the largest hubs of international transportation being Guten Luft, Waldansicht, Brennenburg, and St. Jakob. The country is generally integrated into the global community by means of transportation, but its obscure location from Europe and North America is seen as a large barrier to further transportation integration. Another large reason for the lack of international transportation development is seen in the country's general opposition to globalization, and efforts to open La Plata to the international market has rarely seen stability in developments. Well functioning and modernized domestic transportation methods are largely maintained throughout most of the country, with the most focus being put on the presence of rail methods. Nearly 78% of the populace prefers domestic rail transportation opposed to other methods, and nearly every community has access to railway stations located across the country. The country's rail network competes with European and Asian networks in development extensiveness and intensity. During modernization efforts in the 1990s, the Platiches government became the sole largest consumer of the Hitachi company's Hitachi Rail division. Other methods of domestic transportation in the country are road, canal-river, and air. The government maintains a well developed and extensive road network which sees only half of its capacity in highest levels of usage. The Platiches Großelandstraße system has historically existed since the foundation of the country, but it was only officiated with the country's modernization efforts in 1993. It is the fourth longest highway network in the world at 16,930 kilometers in length, though only about three quarters of its carrying capacity is met each year in usage. Canal and river composite transportation was the most important method of travel in the existence of the country before the development of railways, though it is dwarfed in usage by rail and road transportation in modern times. Domestic air travel is a relatively untapped method of transportation for the country, though the nation's Airline Guild does offer some domestic travel options which are utilized primarily by foreigners in connecting flights. Energy La Plata's economy has, on a historical basis, a constant of remaining isolated from mainstream global economic development. As a result, electricity in the country has been heavily limited for a large part of the nation's history. Energy in the country began in Rosafluß when a coal power plant replaced a river mill for a factory's primary source of energy. Coal power became popular in the country into the early 1900s, but was largely limited to nobles and factories. After the Second Civil War, electricity had spread to most major cities, though it remained low in usage and in capacity and was largely reserved for factories. Even by 1990, only around 14% of the nation's populace had access to electricity, and during the Weiß Satz electricity was largely reserved especially for military use. With the introduction of modernization in the country in 1993, Katarina made it a national goal to supply all of the nation's population with electricity. By 1997, nearly 80% of the nation's population had access to adequate amounts of electricity for personal use. In 2004, 100% of the national population has access to electricity. Because of its late development of mass electricity, energy production in La Plata is based mainly on renewable energy sources. Demographics The Kingdom of La Plata has an official population of 125,830,271 people as recorded in the 2010 census. The nation's estimated population as of 2013 is speculated to be around 125,854,270 people, giving it a growth rate of around 7999.67 people every year, or, 0.0064% every year. La Plata has the lowest natural growth rate in the Americas, though it is expected not to fall into a population decline because of the cultural values in having families. A very strict policy of immigration leads to low total immigration into the nation, and illegal immigration holds the lowest ratings out of any other nations in the Americas. Around 87% of the population are descendants of the Austrians who immigrated to La Plata in the 17th century through the 19th century, making it the majority population throughout the nation. Some 11% of the population is the descendants of the Spaniards who also immigrated to the nation when it was both a Spanish Viceroyality and an Austrian colony and continued to immigrate even when the nation gained independence from the European Hapsburgs. About 2% of the population is made up of other ethnic groups that immigrated into La Plata throughout its history, mainly Czech, Hungarian, Polish, and Romanian settlers living under the domain of the European Hapsburgs. Religion The official state religion of the Kingdom of La Plata is an independent sect of Roman Catholicism known as Platiches Catholicism, which holds views independent of the Catholic church yet has been ordained by Pope Francis of the Holy See and Popes before him that headed the organized Catholic church. Platiches Catholicism has been known to be a mixture of more traditionalist and also more reformist policies that fit with the rule of the Kingdom under the policies of the monarch, and the doctrine of the church is dictated by the monarch of the government of La Plata. Around 86% of the population is follows the state religion of Platiches Catholicism, though freedom of religion is insured to citizens who practice their religion privately or inside the grounds of a religious institution of their own. A small 7% of the population practices Roman Catholicism, largely Spaniards and some Austrians. About 4% of the nation holds atheistic or irreligious views, a viewpoint which is not condoned or condemned by the government. Some 3% of the population practices other religions, mainly Protestantism and Eastern Orthodoxy. La Plata's state religion of Platiches Catholicism holds public holidays, festivals, and gatherings which contribute to the social structure of the nation and the wholeness of national identity. While the doctrine of the church is largely controlled by the government, no one adherent of the religion is penalized for holding some different beliefs than the rest of the church. Platiches Catholicism is known to have elaborate dedications to culture and faith throughout the nation, shown through architecture, festivities, and religious rituals. Sundays are considered to be holy days, and thus every Sunday is protected by the government as a day of rest, of family, and of recreation. Public holidays also protected by the government is the Steigt Tag celebrated on January 1st, Liebt Tag celebrated on February 14th, Ostern Tag celebrated on the March 31st, Speicher Tag celebrated on May 5th, Mittsommer Woch celebrated for seven days from July 7th to July 14th, Toten Zeit celebrated from October 31s to November 2nd, and Weinachten Zeit celebrated on December 24th and 25th. Category:Kingdom of La Plata Category:MineCraftian's Stuff Category:MineCraftian's World Category:Nations